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Amazon Negotiating with Publishers Ahead of iPad, Says Report

Amazon.com has struck deals with Simon & Schuster and HarperCollins to potentially raise the price of ebooks, reports The Wall Street Journal, and could be in negotiations with other publishers over a similar deal. The imminent release of the Apple iPad on April 3, with an iBookstore that could challenge Amazon's Kindle e-reader, is roiling the e-reader market with regard to average pricing and title availability; booksellers have reportedly been using the iPad and other upcoming devices in an attempt to gain leverage on Amazon in negotiations. Early previews of the iBookstore indicate ebook prices floating in the $9.99 to $12.99 range.

Amazon.com has struck deals with book publishers Simon & Schuster and HarperCollins that could potentially raise the price of ebooks, according to online reports, days before Apple releases its iPad tablet PC. Amazon's Kindle e-reader faces a potentially substantial competitor in iPad's e-text feature.

According to an April 1 article in The Wall Street Journal, Amazon is also in discussions with Hachette Book Group and Penguin Group over letting publishers choose the price points for ebooks. Under the terms of the reported agreement, digital offerings from Simon & Schuster and HarperCollins will likely drift from Amazon's previous $9.99 ceiling into a range between $12.99 and $14.99.

Further reading

At the end of January, Amazon confronted Macmillan, which wanted to raise the prices of popular titles such as "Wolf Hall" from $9.99 to between $12.99 and $14.99, by temporarily yanking the publisher's ebooks.

"We will have to capitulate and accept Macmillan's terms because Macmillan has a monopoly over their own titles, and we will want to offer them to you even at prices we believe are needlessly high for e-books," Amazon.com wrote in a Jan. 31 statement about the issue. "Amazon customers will at that point decide for themselves whether they believe it's reasonable to pay $14.99 for a bestselling e-book."

Although Amazon's Kindle line of e-readers proved to be a hit of the holiday 2009 shopping season, the online retailer's willingness to negotiate with booksellers over higher prices indicates a desire to not be outflanked by Apple with regard to book selection. Analysts have predicted that the iPad will be a major seller upon its release, estimating some 120,000 units sold on its first day of preorder availability.